Saut de la Mounine

Saujac

The Saut de la Mounine is a clifftop viewpoint standing some 150 m above a meander of the Lot, facing the perched village of Montbrun and the causses of the Quercy. The Occitan name means "the she-monkey's leap" and refers to one of the best-known legends of the lower Rouergue. The lord of Montbrun, learning that his daughter Ghislaine loved the son of his sworn enemy, is said to have sworn that he would rather see her throw herself into the void. The girl confided in a hermit living in a nearby cave, who had returned from a pilgrimage to Compostela with a she-monkey for company. The hermit dressed the mounine in Ghislaine's clothes and flung it from the top of the cliff before the father's eyes; crushed by what he believed to be his daughter's death, the lord forgave her, then, on learning of the ruse, consented to the marriage. Another version, passed on by the Aveyron tourist boards, has it that the monk Sidoine himself, returning from Compostela with his monkey, toppled from the ledge and owed his life only to his rope belt catching on a box tree, before founding his hermitage in the cave. The two tales coexist on the information panels at the site and in the collections of Quercy folk tales. The viewpoint is today one of the most photographed vantage points in the Lot valley.

Tourisme Aveyron - Saut de la Mounine ↗

Getting there : Purpose-built viewpoint beside the D127, in the commune of Saujac (12260), between Cajarc and Cadrieu; small roadside car park, plunging view over the meander of the Lot, the village and the Château de Montbrun (opposite, on the Lot side). Free access to the site, with no safety provision beyond the guard rail: take care with children.

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound